Thursday, August 09, 2012

Here's the final piece I'm contributing to 'Unworldly Reunion', a show which opens tonight in Toronto, Canada.

white dew, marble steps is about personal growth in our own cultural
backgrounds. More specifically, it is about an Asian growing-up in
Canada. The Chinese characters on the grid paper is an excerpt from
'Marble Steps Complaint', a poem written by one of the great Chinese
poets Li Bai. This piece is influenced by the themes of growth, mystery
and change found in many of Li Bai's poems.

Growing up, I remember
dreading Chinese school every weekend. (If you're Chinese-Canadian you
know what I'm talking about!) I had to memorize many poems in order to
get a passing grade. I hated it. I did not understand why we had to
learn about the past, it just wasn't relevant to me. What influenced me
was the gloss of popculture…

As I grew older I asked myself who
am? What are my origins? This painting is a return to my Chinese
heritage which I was once so involved in as a child.

Wednesday, August 01, 2012

Work in Progress piece.
I was walking around one day to the Japanese antique store and found
this old piece of Japanese paper. As I was walking back to the hotel,
the paper was so dried that it started cracking. To preserve it, once I
went home I tried collaging it onto a painting that I am working on.

You never know what you might find in an old items/antique store, on a bright sunny day.I love finding old items, it is an adventure every time. :)